Twitter will reportedly nix the 140-character limit with a new product
Do you find yourself needing more than 140 characters to get your point across on Twitter? Well, you might soon have an option that allows you to be a bit more verbose. Re/code reports that the social network is prepping “a new product” that will allow users to compose and share longer tweets. Details are scarce right now, but Re/code’s sources indicate that the new feature/app/etc. will enable Twitter users to post long-form musings. What’s more, the company is looking into other ways of relaxing that character count by not counting links and usernames in the tally. These developments would follow recent Twitter tweaks like the “retweet with comment” feature and dropping the 140-character limit on DMs. As is the case with any rumor like this, we may never see the changes make it to the company’s apps or the web, but if it does, you can expect a few more words in your timeline.
Source: Re/code
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden signs up for Twitter
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden recently talked with Neil deGrasse Tyson about the possibility of signing up for Twitter and joining the social internet, and he just made good on his word. Follow @Snowden and you’ll get insights from the famed/notorious leaker himself, rather than through second-hand podcasts and presentations. He hasn’t said much yet, but he’s already teasing “secret projects” at the Freedom of the Press Foundation (which advocates for transparency journalism) and stressing that he sees himself as a “citizen with a voice,” not a hero for the pro-privacy crowd.
Will you see any major revelations on Twitter? Probably not — the NSA documentation that Snowden obtained in 2013 is already in the hands of journalists, and 140 characters doesn’t leave a lot of room for big scoops. Still, it’s a rare chance at seeing Snowden’s thinking on a day-to-day basis, and a reminder that there’s ultimately a human being responsible for all those leaks.
[Image credit: Christopher Lane/AP Images for The New Yorker]
Can you hear me now?
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) September 29, 2015
Source: Edward Snowden (Twitter)
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden signs up for Twitter
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden recently talked with Neil deGrasse Tyson about the possibility of signing up for Twitter and joining the social internet, and he just made good on his word. Follow @Snowden and you’ll get insights from the famed/notorious leaker himself, rather than through second-hand podcasts and presentations. He hasn’t said much yet, but he’s already teasing “secret projects” at the Freedom of the Press Foundation (which advocates for transparency journalism) and stressing that he sees himself as a “citizen with a voice,” not a hero for the pro-privacy crowd.
Will you see any major revelations on Twitter? Probably not — the NSA documentation that Snowden obtained in 2013 is already in the hands of journalists, and 140 characters doesn’t leave a lot of room for big scoops. Still, it’s a rare chance at seeing Snowden’s thinking on a day-to-day basis, and a reminder that there’s ultimately a human being responsible for all those leaks.
[Image credit: Christopher Lane/AP Images for The New Yorker]
Can you hear me now?
— Edward Snowden (@Snowden) September 29, 2015
Source: Edward Snowden (Twitter)
Sony’s big PlayStation 4 update arrives tomorrow
Sony is set to release one of its biggest updates ever for the PlayStation 4, and now we know when it’s coming: tomorrow, September 30th. Update 3.0 includes some significant new changes, especially if you want more streaming options and extra online storage. You’ll soon be able to broadcast or watch games on YouTube Gaming, send 10 second highlight clips to Twitter and “Request to Share Play and Broadcast” a friend’s game or gaming session. Storage on PlayStation Plus has also gone up dramatically from 1GB to 10GB.
Other new feature include a PS4 events app that gives you a calendar for new games and other items, the ability to create gaming communities and “Live from PlayStation,” a hub for the latest screenshots, clips and news. The update will roll out tomorrow, but in the meantime, Sony has detailed the bulk of changes in its blog post and the video below.
Source: Sony
Coca-Cola is the first company to pay Twitter for custom emoji
Hashtag-activated emoji have been invading our Twitter streams for some time now, but would you believe me if I told you that those Star Wars, Dominos and and sport-focused icons didn’t make Twitter a dime? Apparently, they didn’t, but that’s about to change. The company testing out custom “hashflags” as paid advertising — starting with Coca-Cola’s #shareacoke campaign.
Functionally, Coca-Cola’s #shareacoke emoji isn’t any different from the other custom icons you see on Twitter: if you use the right hashtag, the image shows up in your Tweets. Behind the scenes, however, it represents new potential revenue source for the company. Right now, the campaign is just a test — but Twitter’s Ross Hoffman says the program could expand if it does well. “One of our core values at Twitter is #ShipIt,” he told TechCrunch. “The data we get back will help determine the future of what we do with this as a product.”
So, will all your future Twitter emoji be tied to advertising dollars? Only time will tell — but figuring that out is a big deal for Twitter. After all, the company is almost ten years old and it’s still not turning a profit. It needs every advertising dollar it can make.
[Image credit: Stuwdamdorp / Alamy]
Via: Marketing
Source: TechCrunch
Share your Periscope streams with a screenshot
Periscope has rolled out a new feature which allows users to take a screenshot of a stream and share it with the larger Twitter community. It’s essentially the app’s version of a retweet. As TechCrunch points out, this feature is likely to be embraced primarily by the service’s bigger broadcasters like Amanda Oleander or Chris Hadfield as a means of promoting their active live feeds. Additionally, Periscope updated the Private Broadcast function. Users can now select either individual “mutuals” (people that you follow and who also follow you) from the invite list or select everybody on it with a single click. Unfortunately, sharing screenshots and the revamped Private Broadcast is currently only available on the iOS version.
Via: TechCrunch
Source: iTunes
Twitter and Square partner together to allow donations to political campaigns
Twitter and Square are partnering together to allow people to donate to political campaigns. It is very easy to donate too. The candidates first have to set up a Square Cash account, once it’s verified they can share the unique link or $Cashtag.
The new special tags or unique URL’s will have a built in donate button. Once you click it, enter your donation amount, add your credit or debit card info, and your donation will be made. After the donation is made, you can then share the $Cashtag with your followers if you would like.
Source: Twitter
Come comment on this article: Twitter and Square partner together to allow donations to political campaigns
Is Twitter down for you right now?
On Monday afternoon, users around the world began noticing that Twitter is experiencing technical difficulties. The web version of Twitter displays a page with the message seen above. Mobile users, though, are seeing spotty performance. Users on phones and tablets are split between using Twitter’s services like usual and not being able to do anything at all.
The social networking site has not yet commented on the outage.
Developing…
Come comment on this article: Is Twitter down for you right now?
Google and Twitter working on ‘Instant Articles’ solution for their platforms
In this fast-paced world, every second seems to count. Google and Twitter have started working together to trim down the seconds that smartphone users may wait for an article on their smartphone to appear from a few seconds to zero seconds. So-called “instant articles” are part of a push by social media and tech giants like Facebook, Apple and Snapchat to make it easier to connect content publishers with readers. The apparent Google and Twitter partnership adds a couple different wrinkles to the concept of instant articles as the companies plan to open source their publishing tools and they do not plan to host the content themselves, relying instead on cached web pages.
Sources have pointed out that the use of cached information has a couple benefits, notably for Google. First, this may head off some complaints connected to Google providing results from their own hosted content, like the news snippets many European publishers object to, instead of sending users to other sites. Second, the use of cached pages means the original ads will continue to appear next to a story, helping them to retain their value longer.
Sources close to the project say Google and Twitter are speaking of the new instant articles as “accelerated mobile pages” during this development stage. They also point out that the companies do not plan to launch separate, standalone solutions or apps for the presentation of this content – it will just launch from within the Google or Twitter framework.
No details have been revealed about what ad revenue structures may be like for the new service and both companies have declined to comment on the project.
source: Re/Code
Come comment on this article: Google and Twitter working on ‘Instant Articles’ solution for their platforms
Latest Periscope update lets you broadcast to your followers in landscape
Periscope, the popular live video broadcasting service from the makers of Twitter, is getting quite the notable update today that will make the app much easier to use. Among a few other notable changes, Periscope will now let you broadcast to your followers in landscape – a feature that many users have been asking for since the service launched back in May.
With this new addition, you can simply hold your device in portrait, or match the broadcaster’s orientation to maintain full screen video. Obviously this is a welcome feature, as users will no longer have to tilt their heads to watch a sideways video.
Related: We’re on Periscope! Follow us for live Android goodness
That’s not the only notable change in the app, though. The new update will allow you to see who shared a broadcast with you, so now you won’t need to wonder how a broadcast showed up in your main feed. There’s also a new feature that will make private broadcasting much easier on Android. Check out the full changelog below for more details:
- Share Context: When someone you follow shares a broadcast, it appears in your home feed. In this update, we’ve added an indicator beneath the broadcast title explaining who shared it with you. No more wondering why a broadcast showed up in your feed!
- Mutual Follow: This update makes private broadcasting much easier on Android. When you start a private broadcast, you can choose from a list of mutual followers (people you follow, who also follow you). We think this list is a more natural selection of people who you are likely to broadcast to. We’ve also added an option to quickly select all of your mutual follows. See something you want to share with your friends, but not the whole world? Check. This same behavior is coming soon to iOS, so hang tight!
The big update should be rolling out to the Play Store as we speak. Follow the link below to grab the latest version.
AIVAnet 